The Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous Podcast - Almost Famous Adventures: Are Joan and Chock the Real Deal?

Episode Date: February 1, 2025

Bob Guiney and Andrew Firestone are hanging out in Pebble Beach with the latest success story from Bachelor Nation, Joan Vassos and Chock Chapple!  They open up about the challenges they’ve faced in their relationship since the finale of The Golden Bachelorette, and Joan and Chock get real about life as empty nesters!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. My boyfriend's professor is way too friendly, and now I'm seriously suspicious. Wait a minute, Sam. Maybe her boyfriend's just looking for extra credit. Well, Dakota, luckily, it's back to school week on the OK Storytime podcast, so we'll find out soon. This person writes, my boyfriend's been hanging out with his young professor a lot. He doesn't think it's a problem, but I don't trust her. Now he's insisting we get to know each other, but I just want her gone.

Hold up. Isn't that against school policy? That seems inappropriate. Maybe find out how it ends by listening to the OK Storytime podcast and the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Let's start with a quick puzzle. The answer is Ken Jennings' appearance on The Puzzler with A.J. Jacobs. The question is, what is the most entertaining listening experience in podcast land? Jeopardy Truthers believe in... I guess they would be Kenspiracy theorists. That's right.

To give you the answers and you still blitzers. The Puzzler. Listen on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What would you do if one bad decision forced you to choose between a maximum security prison or the most brutal boot camp designed to be hell on earth? Unfortunately for Mark Lombardo, this was the choice he faced. He said, you are a number, a New York State number, and we own you. Listen to shock incarceration on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Kurt Brown-Oller. And I am Scotty Landis, and we host Bananas, the podcast where we share the weirdest, funniest, real news stories from all around the world.

And sometimes from our guest's personal lives, too. Like when Whitney Cummings recently revealed her origin story on the show. There's no way I don't already have rabies. This is probably just why my personality is like this. I've been surviving rabies for the past 20 years. New episodes of bananas drop every Tuesday in the exactly right network. Listen to bananas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is the Almost Famous Podcast with IHeart Radio.

Welcome back to Almost Famous, the OGs, the podcast of the Stars. I just added that part. I don't know where that came from, actually. Day two. Day two of the Pebble Beach Extravagaboard. Amaganza with my beautiful and handsome co-host, Andrew Firestone. Standing in for Trista. Standing in for Trista.

Barely. Holding on for dear life. You're doing a fantastic job, buddy. Let's recap our final interview of last night, just to bring you guys up to speed. We got a chance to speak with Tim, no, Keith. Keith. Yep. And Keith was sitting where, I was sitting where you are, and Andrew was there and Keith was here.

And I believe the interview opened with Keith going, I just got to tell you guys, I don't even remember who the hell you are. I thought you were a dick So Keith I think he had had a couple glasses of wine From dinner I remember So I think interviewing Keith is not

Dissimilar to drinking out of a fire hose I'm sure he did not have anything to say No no no we didn't have my show We had your nice guy to sit and listen Super reserved took a while to get him out of his show But you know Once we got him out We scratched the surface

The little boy came out Oh my goodness yeah We learned a lot though You could see why I kept him around for so long. He's so entertaining. He's such a great guy. He's a party in a pocket that guy. I know.

The party centers on Keith. Oh, my father used to say they broke the mold on that. They sure did, buddy. They sure did. Well, welcome to the show you guys. We've got Joan and Chalk here, of course, the Golden Bachelorette couple that came off the show, which we're very, very proud of you guys. I was thinking about it earlier today, and I even brought it up to Joan.

I thought, you know, we didn't do these things when Andrew and I were the Bachelor. We didn't do like organized events where we got together with our discarded. I don't know how you say it. Like I was a lovable loser from Trista's season. You probably wouldn't internet back then. No, my wife always says, well, you didn't even have a cell phone back then. I'm like, okay, thanks. The covered wagons would have taken forever.

How to assemble everyone. Be homing pigeons. Yeah, send it by a note by telegraph. But, you know, it's nice that we get to get together like this and get to see you. Like I'd love to see in Chalk, you know, interact with all of his. guys from your season. Is it nice for you? I mean, is it nice to get together and see the guys, Chuck? And absolutely. We were a great time yesterday afternoon. We had a couple of drinks and just reminisced about the Bachelor Mansion, the journey that we all had, and just catching up.

Yeah. It's got to be. I think it would be fun because I know I like to get together with the guys from Trista's season. She wasn't there necessarily. So it's, it could be a blessing and a curse for you, I would guess. But it's about to be really nice for you to get to see a lot of those guys too. No, so I love seeing it because, you know, you give up a lot of of your life to be on that show. So, you know, sending somebody home is really hard. And like those rose ceremonies were like torture for me. I hated it. I hated it. Because even if you don't have a love connection with them, you have a friendship. You form friendships no matter what. So to see that they came out whole and like really good and at least got

friendships out of this. And, you know, like they all said, they all kind of had this therapy. They had these moments that they were in this weird place, you know, in their life in their 60s and 50s and 60s. We didn't have any 70 year olds and found themselves single and found this tribe of people that were experiencing the same thing. And then got to like work through some of their issues that they had kind of been holding in because there aren't a lot of people like us. I mean, like I had almost no friends that were my age and single. And I'm sure these guys didn't either. So they came off this journey kind of whole and with this great group of friends, even if they didn't get a love connection. It's a kind of a like Andrew was saying yesterday, you said it a few times. There's a positive

value that comes out of doing something like this. I think one thing that I noticed from just from talking to some of the crew last night and watching them all interact, and I was thinking of the dichotomy of when I was on the show when I was 26, versus doing the show now at a more mature age where you have

confidence that's not bravado. Meaning you're not cocky, but you have a confidence because you've done things. You've raised kids. You've had a career. And you come in with an experience and a perspective that's completely different than some of the young you know, quote unquote, younger bachelors because they're just starting their life off.

They don't know what they like. Right. They don't know where they're going. They don't have an experience. And I mean, they have, you know, kind of this optimism and kind of a doughy look in their eyes. But I think that the perspective that this gives is like, no, no, no, I have, you know, I've done this. I've been there. And this is actually what I want.

Yeah. And that's a confidence that's earned as opposed to taken. Sure. Yeah. Well, I think that that plays a little bit into the drama that happened. in the younger bachelor ones because I don't think that they have like you said a lot of confidence

that they're just trying to figure themselves out and they are I think that their backstories aren't big enough to carry a season of making them interesting so what makes the season interesting is a drama. So they just don't have enough

they haven't lived enough life. And when you're younger too, everything offends you. Yeah. Do you mean? She looks at me funny. She looks at me funny. There's just hardly anything.

Yeah, he's like, I don't have time for that. I know. I watched chalk last night and you handle it so well. You know, you have this kind of quiet confidence about you, which I really admire. And you're in the restaurant there. And, you know, someone comes over and, you know, they, oh, I mean, Andrew and I have talked about this and laughed about this over the years because people will come up and they go, I've never watched your show, but I want to get a picture with you. And you have to determine in that moment, okay, am I going to be like, well, then why do you want a picture with me? Or do I just go, oh, what the hell? And so I'm a what the hell guy, right? I'm a what the hell guy.

Yeah, me too. I mean, I'll watch you do it. I watch you do it. And it's kind of funny. I got to that point probably later. In the beginning, I was probably like, if you didn't watch a show, why am I taking a picture? Why are you interrupting my dinner? But you're just people that want that.

Oh, yeah. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Joan has a lot of men that go, well, I want to take a picture with you so I can give it to my wife. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah, sure. Sure, you do, buddy, sure. I'm curious, so, you know, on your path or your journey, I hate using those words, but what were the anxiety points? What were the things? Was it, was it career?

Was it family? Was it your own, you know, worried about getting your own heart, broken was there anything that was kind of stuck out as an anxiety point as you went through for those you know those months where you're like kind of on an island like you don't have that support around you for a little while you're so don't you're all you're all alone and like in the you know in the when it gets dark and you're sitting in bed you're like this is what god and you get it so well because you did it yeah well the only people you can talk to are these producers who then

you're the whole time you're thinking are they have agenda are they have working their agenda do I have to rethink everything I say to these people I did I felt the same way it's that's such a question because you are so alone. You don't have your friend. You don't have your family. You have nobody to bounce any ideas off of it. And you also have nobody to meet the people. So you are completely in charge of making the judgment. And you don't ever know if everybody is really showing their true selves. Are they showing their Bachelor TV shelves or selves or are they showing you who they really, really are? And you have, you don't have a lot of time to spend with people. Unless they have an individual date, which you only have what I think I had, I think I'd

seven. Yeah. And I think that's more actually than a normal season. Yeah. I think normally you have four individual dates and then the rest are group dates. I think you're right. Because I don't remember, but I mean, it was a long time ago. And several vodas ago.

But I don't remember. I think it's, I think your season had more. Yeah. I was really lucky. I asked for more. Like they said, what do you want? And I think you need more time with people. Like those group dates, they're fun.

but and you see like little things about people but you never get to have like serious conversations so um i think my anxiety came exactly from what you guys are talking about those late nights where you're wondering am i seeing the true person um like i need somebody that i can trust to talk to and you have nobody and you're just you're out on island you're making the decisions all by yourself and i also had some guilt about like moving on and that my you and i have talked about this before that my kids kind of thought okay well this is like mom's new life. She's going to be kind of ours and maybe a little at our service because we have my grandchildren now. And I think that it was a little hard for them to accept that, you know,

I had in my mind like 32, I had 32 great years with John. I thought I have 32 more years possibly that I could have another great love in my life. And I was going to find that. And they kind of had to like adjust to that thought. So I had a little guilt I was dealing with while I was there. But maybe something mother's guilt is so interesting. It's so deep. It really is. Totally different.

It's awful. So what about you, Chuck? Like, what was your, you know, because you're obviously, you're professional. You have, you have a job. You have all the, you have your life there. And now you're kind of removing, you're taking a hiatus from that. And was there anything that was keeping you up at night? Was there anything that was worrying you about, about this?

I mean, you always have the option to leave. But like, what was your, what was your anxiety? Very fair question. And my best answer on that is I really don't have anxiety. Been through a lot in my life. And you just deal with it. It's life. That's the journey in life in these chapters.

I'm a guy that sits at, I'll get nervous or anxious. Where'd I put my car keys? It's the little stuff. It's the big stuff going, you know, I've got to deal with it. And so with Joan, I just knew right away. And people ask, they go, when was the moment? There was a lot of moments. We got along very well at the Disneyland Day.

But I watched her handle these other men. And we're both very social. And guys, friends. And I go, I need somebody. I want somebody in my life. life like that that's eloquent that's caring for other people and so that anxiety uh you know just never existed because i go i do right away or you know within a couple of just times that we had together as far as the other guys um there were some really good guys yep and i knew there was two

of them that really cared for joan yeah and again i think when you're older you're going it was jones decision of who she took to the end and you just have to say that's fate whatever happens happens. Yeah. And we've all had loves in our life. And it wouldn't work out. I would have been hurt, but I wasn't going to be anxious about it going, she needs to make the decision, the right decision for her.

Sure. Because she was the lead. Right. Any one of us could have said, hey, we're out. Yeah. And I respect somebody. I had a conversation, no names, with somebody yesterday. And they go, it just wasn't, you know, it wasn't going to work with the two of them.

Sure, sure. That's okay. Yeah, there's certain people that, like, kind of end up in friend zone pretty early. And you guys get, like, you and the man get it. And you can see it and you can feel it. And I certainly was in friend zone with some people, but, like, I needed the friends, too. Sure. So, you know, sometimes you keep friends along on the journey because you need them.

Like, you can't just have all, you know, possible love interest. I was, I was Trista's friend zone. Yeah. I know, but I felt it, too. You knew it, yeah. Oh, yeah. Like, I literally started advocating for Ryan, and she'll tell you this. I love that.

I literally was like, God, that guy, man, you know, because she, I think I told Andrew, the story last night. I told someone, she comes home from a date that I was not on. And it was like a one-on-one date or whatever. And she comes home and I'm there with, you know, the other 15 guys in the mansion. And it's a frat party. It's going off. And she's like, pulls me aside because I'm the leader of the party, of course. Yeah, of course.

She's like, why would I go on a date with you? I come back and everyone's reading the Bible and meditating. But I go on a date without you. And I come back to this. And I'm like, uh, she got. She busted me. I'm like, well, I'm not. For the record, Ryan's in there writing poetry for you.

And I'm down here just who's hooping and holler. Yeah. So, yeah, I think you're right. people know kind of where they're at right from the beginning, you know, and there might be a reason. My boyfriend's professor is way too friendly, and now I'm seriously suspicious. Oh, wait a minute, Sam, maybe her boyfriend's just looking for extra credit. Well, Dakota, it's back to school week on the OK Storytime podcast, so we'll find out soon. This person writes, my boyfriend has been hanging out with his young professor a lot.

He doesn't think it's a problem, but I don't trust her. Now he's insisting we get to know each other, but I just want her. Now, hold up. Isn't that against school policy? That sounds totally inappropriate. Well, according to this person, this is her boyfriend's former professor and they're the same age. It's even more likely that they're cheating. He insists there's nothing between them. I mean, do you believe him? Well, he's certainly trying to get this person to believe him because he now wants them both to meet. So, do we find out if this person's boyfriend really cheated with his professor or not? To hear the explosive finale, listen to the OK Storytime podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

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What would you do if one bad decision forced you to choose between a maximum security prison or the most brutal boot camp designed to be hell on earth? Unfortunately for Mark Lombardo, this was the choice he faced. He said, you are a number, a New York state number, and we own you. Shock incarceration, also known as boot camps, are short-term, highly regimented correctional programs that mimic military basic training. These programs aim to provide a shock of prison life, emphasizing strict discipline, physical training, hard labor, and rehabilitation programs.

Mark had one chance to complete this program and had no idea of the hell awaiting him the next six months. The first night was so overwhelming, and you don't know who's next to you. And we didn't know what to expect in the morning. Nobody tells you anything. Listen to shock incarceration on the eye. Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I was going to ask you guys this, too, because you do navigate this stuff very well,

and very similarly, you know, very, you guys have a nice energy about you. Do you ever get tired of feeling like you have to defend your relationship? Do you know what I mean? Like you come off of a TV show and everyone's like, oh, this can't be real. Yeah. I feel like a lot of the couples from the Bachelor franchise prior to the Golden, failed as a result of always feeling like they had to defend that relationship because it's an additional pressure. If I may, our body language when we're in public, we're together, just tells

everyone. It's the internet where people just want to pick you apart on everything. So the solution of that, like Joe Rogan says, don't read it. Just stay away and you don't have any of those problems. Because we could, I mean, it could be absolutely perfect. It's somebody out there in this world is going to go, oh, it's not. But we have a great time together. It's like, we've said this numerous times. It's like we've been married five or ten years. Yeah. There was a reason we ended up together and we just compliment each other or we just go,

okay, you know. Yeah. He's all good. He's super easy. So, I mean, I have to admit, I'm probably not the easy part of this relationship. So he goes with the flow, which is thank you very much because I have a lot of other stuff, as, as he knows, with family and stuff, you know, I'm like the matriarch, so I have a lot of responsibilities.

And the girls got some clothes, too. But I, our hotel room here, or, you know, we need one three times as, as bad. Just to handle the club. Yeah. My life is exactly. I know. But I do feel like, I do feel a little responsible for making people think or know that this is real. Yeah.

And for, and I don't know why I feel this responsibility, but like I want them, I want people to know that this can really work. Sure. And then it does work with a lot of people. Yeah. And. Well, especially when it's working for you. Yeah. Because it's, people are going to always have that sort of judgmental skepticism.

Yeah. immediately and you know I think um you know I remember feeling that kind of pressure uh and we obviously we didn't make it to the end clearly but um I remember feeling that kind of pressure and thinking you know god how do these other people deal with it you know and it was kind of interesting you know and I wondered if you guys if you guys felt that definitely and especially like on the heels of Gary and Tracea not working out like I feel I actually going into the season I felt like maybe I was responsible for like this like this golden continuing yeah like if i didn't make it and then they didn't make it they're going to be like oh it doesn't work for this age group so i did feel

a little bit of pressure um but i wasn't going to let that affect my decision because this is still my life yeah so i wasn't let it so i happily found my person so i feel responsible i want that to be out there and we've even done we did an instagram post one time when i was just sick of it and we were we were in california and um we were in l.a for something i don't remember what it was for and we came home from being out at dinner, and I was like, let's just, like, talk. And so we laid in bed, and I'm like, I don't understand why people don't think we're not real.

Like, here we are. We're in California. We're together all the time. We're together like every other week. I mean, we make effort to see each other, and they still don't believe it. Yeah. And we post.

And then the other thing happens is you post and people like, oh, you're just in it for the fame. I'm like, well, I can't win here. Yeah, you can't win. Because if you show them the proof, well, oh, why do you feel like you have to show us anything? Yeah, exactly. That's exactly what they say.

Come on. I mean, it's exhausting. It's a rabbit hole. I'm like, I can't get down here. Yeah. So what does life look like for you guys now? What, I mean, not looking down the road, but like right now, what is, what's, what's life for you guys now?

A lot of travel, a lot of fun. You're off to, you're off to a little vacation. I won't give it away, but you guys, this is the fun part. This is the fun part. You know, this is the part that, so when you're our age, you've spent your whole life, like planning for this time in your life. You know, you've raised your family. You've built your careers.

You know, maybe got made a little money. so you have some resources where you can finally kind of just have fun and we are finally at that point in our life and then all of a sudden I didn't have anybody

to have that fun with and you didn't either so we found each other and now we can start that part of our life and so we really are we've traveled a lot we go to New York City

all the time he's come to Maryland a bunch of times I've been to Kansas plan to go back of course and then we're finally going on a vacation just the two of us we haven't been able to do this yeah and I think the Bachelor captures

like kind of these different chapters like four chapters i think in life there's like you know adolescence then there's that kind of young period and then child raising and family and career building yeah and then this chapter and yeah bachelor catches chapter two in chapter four yeah and and the chapter three which is where where i am and where you guys are right it's like you know it's it's you know it's a lot of work it's a lot of responsibility and it's not you know it's not as exciting as where you guys are It's not as exciting where chapter two was, which is this kind of like optimistic, the world's, you know, my oyster, whatever else. But I think it's really cool that you guys have had those three chapters individually.

Yeah. That perspective, that confidence, that, you know, that life experience. And now you're like both, yes, this is what we want to do. Do you want to do it? I want to do it? You want to do it? Let's go. Yeah, let's go.

And if you don't, and it's so easy. That's totally fine. That's fine. And you don't have. And so I think that's like this kind of bond that's. you guys have that the younger bachelors don't have yet. Yeah. And you actually have the time. I do want to do this on your podcast. I want to announce

we are going to adopt a baby. You heard it here first. Everybody. Oh, boy. My father and me. I don't want us to get adopted. My father and my mother both adopted people. So I've been through that. Yeah, so you know how it goes. Yeah, I'm joking. I'll die.

I love your down to your discussion on that. I was like, guys, this one FYI, we're getting married tomorrow night. He keeps doing this. We also, so part of the podcast We're actually, we have a baby Labrador retriever, a little puppy. We're going to give you guys as your guest. Would you?

Take it on your voyage. I already have a dog. I don't need another dog. And he is like an adopted dog. You know, to speak to that point too. You know, be remiss if we don't mention that obviously the golden bachelor, they divorced. They kind of, and we've talked about this, they could have rushed into the marriage scenario. And you guys seem to have your own timeline about it, which is no timeline right now.

It's just like, you know what? We're just riding with it. And I had actually even said at that time, and I did not know either of those people there, Gary, or. Or Teresa. Yeah, I think. I didn't know. Yeah. And I was like, so I didn't want to judge.

Like, everyone was like, what do you think? And I'm like, I don't know them. So I don't know. I said, but I don't know why there would be a rush at this stage in the game to do that when you have family where you're at. And you have family where you're at in Kansas. It's like, why would you try and upend everything? thing. You know, it's like, let's just roll with it to be a part of each other's lives. Yeah. I mean, I think it's pretty, I think that speaks volumes as well, because I think that

the pressure for the younger bachelor people are, okay, now you're, now you're engaged, now you got to get married. Let's go, you know. I didn't have the whole thing getting married, but Jen, who I was with my season, lived in Chicago, and I was in San Francisco. And so I felt, where we both felt this compulsion were like, she needed to be with me or I needed to be with her. And we decided I didn't move out to San Francisco, but I didn't realize, or we didn't realize, we're upending her entire life. So not only we're making this transition to now we're going to be together, but her job, her how, like all this stuff.

All of her friends. And I didn't have the perspective on it, probably to be cautious enough about it or be, or be mindful enough about that, like, look at all of this stuff we're giving up. All I thought was, we're together, it's fun, we're going to go do this and this. And, you know, did not give the consideration that she had just basically just kind of pulled the rip cord on everything that she had done up into that point, which was hers on her own. Yeah.

And now it's just like, now we're together. Yeah. And that was, you know, I mean, the press and the, I'll put that aside. Yeah. It was just two people that all of a sudden were like instantly without, you know, kind of leaning into it, without speeding up into it, which is like, no, we're at max capacity right away. Yeah. And a huge responsibility for you.

Yeah. Because all of a sudden you have like this dependent. Yeah. Like she's not your equal anymore. Like she didn't have her life and you had your life. now you have your life and she has nothing. Yeah. And I didn't put that, I didn't give that enough care, I think. And in hindsight now,

you know, with looking back, of course I see that. But I just don't think that I was careful enough with that. And I regret that. Well, you're in love.

Or cognizant of that. Well, that's amazing that takes over. The canyon and I, we've gone through that in our marriage recently. You know, but I upended us and moved us to Michigan.

Yeah. You know, she gave up everything. And it was like, and I wasn't as thoughtful as I should have been about it either because I was thinking about, oh, my dad's health, and, you know, I had these other things that were motivating us and

motivating me, I guess. And, yeah, you don't realize that. That's really thoughtful of you to think like that. Because, yeah. And even, you know, with my wife, we've been married now 17 years in July. And, but she, to raise kids, you know, like, she gave up all of her life there as well. And I'm thinking, you know, this is what we need to do. And this is, you know, she wants to do it. I want to do it. But now you're like, think of all of the sacrifices that she made in order to give us this happy life, which is amazing, but there's a part of it that she had to sacrifice way more than I did. Sure.

Yeah. I didn't see it in the moment. In the moment, I'm like, no, this is what we both want, right? This is what we want? Okay, let's do it. Yeah, let's do it. But never thought about what the sacrifice was for it. Well, even if you, like, don't move or you don't, you know, make any big changes, like,

as far as location, you know, when you have kids, there are sacrifices at that point. And so, like, I gave up my career. I was a computer programmer. code and I gave it my career to like raise my kids. But when the kids are raised, that's when it really hit you. Yeah. Because then all of a sudden you're like, wow, my kids are out of the house. What am I going to do? It's a really weird place to be as a woman. Yeah. When you give up everything and all of a sudden like, do I go like buy tennis outfits and start playing tennis? Like there's this weird, like what do I do now with myself? I actually went back and I got my

interior design degree. But it was like kind of out of the blue, all of a sudden I felt very useless. Yeah. Yeah. And speaking of the interior design degree, I now have new pillows. Master bedroom's been repainted. The guest bedroom's been repainted. Awesome.

New end tables. Yeah. And a new coffee table. Milk crate, you know, coffee table. It's all on. Yeah. Tapestries. Yeah.

New curtains. The Mexican rug. The Kelly LeBrock. Weird sized posters off the wall. There are no posters. That's a shame. I used to love that Kelly LeBrock poster. That's a shame.

My boyfriend's professor is way too friendly, and now I'm seriously suspicious. Well, wait a minute, Sam, maybe her boyfriend's just looking for extra credit. Well, Dakota, it's back to school week on the OK Storytime podcast, so we'll find out soon. This person writes, my boyfriend has been hanging out with his young professor a lot. He doesn't think it's a problem, but I don't trust her. Now, he's insisting we get to know each other, but I just want her gone. Now, hold up. Isn't that against school policy? That sounds totally inappropriate. Well, according to this person, this is her boyfriend's former professor, and they're the same age.

And it's even more likely that they're cheating. He insists there's nothing between them. I mean, do you believe him? Well, he's certainly trying to get this person to believe him because he now wants them both to meet. So, do we find out if this person's boyfriend really cheated with his professor or not? To hear the explosive finale, listen to the OK Storytime podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What would you do if one bad decision forced you to choose between a maximum security? prison or the most brutal boot camp designed to be hell on earth.

Unfortunately for Mark Lombardo, this was the choice he faced. He said, you are a number, a New York State number, and we own you. Shock incarceration, also known as boot camps, are short-term, highly regimented correctional programs that mimic military basic training. These programs aim to provide a shock of prison life, emphasizing strict discipline, physical training, hard labor, and rehabilitation programs. Mark had one chance to complete this program and had no idea of the hell awaiting him the next six months.

The first night was so overwhelming, and you don't know who's next to you. And we didn't know what to expect in the morning. Nobody tells you anything. Listen to shock incarceration on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. My name is Ed. Everyone say hello, Ed. from a very rural background myself

my dad is a farmer and my mom is a cousin so like it's not like what do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club I know it sounds like the start of a bad joke but that really was my reality nine years ago I just normally do straight stand-up

but this is a bit different on stage stood a comedian with a story that no one expected to hear 22nd of July 2015 a 23 year old man had killed his family. And then he came to my house. So what do you get when a true crime producer

walks into a comedy club? A new podcast called Wisecrack, where stand-up comedy and murder takes center stage. Available now. Listen to Wisecrack on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A foot washed up. a shoe with some bones in it. They had no idea who it was.

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and I just looked at my computer screen. I was just like, ah, gotcha. On America's Crime Lab, we'll learn about victims and survivors, and you'll meet the team behind the scenes at Authrum, the Houston Lab that takes on the most hopeless cases to finally solve the unsolvable. Listen to America's Crime Lab on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

I think that whatever, you know, I mean, you know, for 17 years, what you can be as additive to the other person's life. Yeah. You know, and recognizing like them independently, not just as a couple. And this is, you know, something that I'm going through right now. It's like recognizing not only the importance of a couple, but recognizing the importance of that individual. And how can I be additive to their life? How can I be supportive? And it's challenging because, you know, so much of life is me, me, me.

like, like, what do I do? Even if I'm thinking that I'm being generous, yeah, it's a lot of it's in my own head. Sure. What am I, you know? Yeah, you're thinking about at least. I mean, you guys are like such mature, um,

husbands and fathers way more mature than anybody I knew. Like when I was raising my kids, I think that the, um, I don't even know what, like the, like this family intelligence you have and like awareness of your family situation is like really impressive. I just have to say that. Wow. It's a curve though.

I mean, like it's such a learning curve. Yeah. And, you know, turning 50 this year, like, I look back when I was 26 doing the show or 27 or whatever was. And I'm like, I was such a baby. Oh, we're also a should be at a page. I was such a kid. You didn't know what you didn't know. No, it didn't know.

No, it doesn't really good way to fun. It takes a lot of living to get this maturity. It does. But also, it also takes a lot of talking about it, right? I mean, you know, a little, like through the show and we were talking with the gentleman last night to Guy and Gary, it's like they learned a little bit. They learned a little bit about themselves. And, and like, this next chapter that they're in right now, maybe they have sharpened. like what it is that they want.

Yeah. And by going, having to sit on a couch like this and talk to us and say it over and over again, what's important to you? What are your priorities? And how do you want to spend your life? Yeah. I think it's good to talk it through. Yeah.

It makes you think about the things that are important instead of just like they're in your head and then you forget about them when, you know, something comes up. Yeah. Yep. The child raising years are the toughest you guys will ever go through. Yeah. Yeah. It is.

And then, you know, health comes at that period or later with yourself, with your parents, with your loved ones. Yeah. But it's just, I mean, you're so active. I think you said three kids. Yeah. Yeah. And you've got two.

Two boys. I mean, you're just active. And men have, this is my opinion, men have evolved. Back in my dad's generation, there was a lot more divorce. Right. And men are so much more active in raising kids now than what they did. Trust me, I went through psychotherapy on this. Yeah.

And it's just, you are because I bet you guys go to the soccer games. You go, you know, you might even go to practice, but you're involved so much more. And I think that's what's keeping people together. Yeah. But it's tough. I mean, could we do it again? Raised babies? I love those years of my life.

I love that's an option right now. We're going to put some photo out. I'm glad they're over, yeah. They were great times, but it's just so much work. I mean, could possibly be like, I could probably honestly say that those were the best times in my life. I mean, I felt such love, and we had such close friend groups because you're with your kids, friends, parents, like, all the time. You, like, you form these really, really close connections. So you feel very supported, and you're all doing it together.

which is really fun, but I look back and I'm like, I had zero time for myself. I don't think I got a facial or a massage or like, I only think I got my nails done for like 10 years. Oh, no, you talk about that all the time. She literally just said this morning, she went to the gym at 6 a.m. And I'm like, what are you doing? You have a chance to sleep in. Now, granted, like you, we got up at 4 a.m.

Because I have our East Coast. And she's like, I don't have a chance to do this at home. No. You know, and she's like, I'm going to go to the gym. And when you guys go to golf, I'm going to lay in my bed until Hannah tells me not. too. I love that. So two nights ago, or sorry, a few nights ago, I was driving my son back from soccer practice, like 9.30 at night. And I'm lamenting. I'm like, oh, it's dark and late and I'm tired. I get work in the morning, blah, blah, blah. And then he just said to me just nonchalantly

just said, well, dad, you know, in two months I get my license. And I literally, like, teared up. And I couldn't breathe for a second. I'm like, yes, it is encompassing. It does take all your time. I, you know, all those things. But man, when it's gone, I'm going to miss it because it doesn't come back. Because those car conversations are so valuable. You get the best conversations because you're not eye-to-eye with them. You're looking at the road and they say things to you that they would never say if you were sitting across from them.

Can I offer some advice? Yes. Drivers that. And then pay for extra hours. It's like 40 hours, pay for 80. That's money you could ever drive. Make it long. Especially if it's a son.

Because sons don't want to listen to you. Yeah. And let somebody else teach them how to drive. That's a good point. A captive audience in the car is, you know, driving to tournaments and doing whatever else. Like, and it's just, you know, they're there and I don't let them use their phone in the car. And it's so incredibly valuable. And when he said that, I'm like, yep, this is a chapter that's closing.

Yeah. That child raising for, you know, for him in that period is, that chapter's closing and it's not opening back up again. Oh, God. They're so true. Yeah. And I went through that, especially with my son. What was really neat is when he turned 21, he and I went to a stake place and he ordered to drink.

Yeah. It was just he's a man. You know, and then he was in college, and then he just recently graduated and moved to North Carolina. And you miss them, but it's, you know, they've got to go live their life. They spread their wings and find out who and what they want. Yeah. And don't dread, like, like, I hated, you know, my kids learning how to drive and growing

up and going to college. But when they come back, like, like great humans and adults, they are really fun, too, to have around. So, like, like, my kids are. my favorite people to be around. So, like, there'll be some, like, sad moments for you when you take them off to college, but they come back, and it's really, really fun then.

Yeah. Well, you're actually very optimistic that my kids are going to get into college. I love that. My kids got in, your kids will get in. I give me to you, you're okay. With the brains on both of those parents, I think they're going to be just fine.

I'm worried about you. Well, you guys, thank you so much for joining us at the Pebble Beach, the almost famous Pebble Beach outing. Like we said, it's the 17. to Andrew, it's the third for me. But we've had such a good time with you guys, and I love you all being here. I've loved getting to know you.

I'm a big fan of the two of you guys, and I just feel like what you've done, I think, for this franchise is next level, because I think the authenticity of what you guys do together is it speaks volumes way more than, you know, somebody else's track record of just rushing to something and, you know, not getting there in the proper way. So it's like, you know, I have no advice to give other than, you know, enjoy the ride because it's always a fun one.

And clearly, if Andrew and I are any indication, it'll go on for the next 20-some years for you. So, you know, with the password family. Yeah, yeah, I guess so. If I can ask one favor of your listeners. Yes. Would you guys send me socks? I don't have socks anymore. You got it while taking away because you're not allowed to wear it anymore.

You got Amy Sugarman got you some nice. You got the Amy Sugarman talks, yeah, yeah. Have you guys seen Jones post about my socks? No, I didn't see it. Oh, my God. So I go to his house for the first time. in Kansas and he's like I have like this shock this sock issue he goes I hate like paring my socks after I wash them so I just throw them into a big container he was actually like two containers and I go

bring him I'll do them I spent two days like probably four or five hours each day pairing his socks and there were 346 pairs oh my gosh I'm a sock man too I've got a ton yeah but you pair them after you wash I do for the most part but we also have a bin where you know the dryer that needs a I know, where do they go? It's a pretty good size bin. I'm not going to lie. We might need you to come to our house and help me out there. I will do it.

It seems, it's kind of therapeutic, actually. I'm sure. Well, thanks you guys. Thank you so much for wanting to talk to us. Most to look. Most look. All right. Good to see you again.

Yeah, you as well. Almost famous the OG. We're going golfing. My boyfriend's professor is way too friendly and now I'm seriously suspicious. Wait a minute, Sam. Maybe her boyfriend's just. looking for extra credit. Well, Dakota, luckily, it's back to school week on the OK Storytime podcast, so we'll find

out soon. This person writes, my boyfriend's been hanging out with his young professor a lot. He doesn't think it's a problem, but I don't trust her. Now he's insisting we get to know each other, but I just want her gone. Hold up. Isn't that against school policy? That seems inappropriate. Maybe find out how it ends by listening to the OK Storytime podcast on the IHeart

Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Let's start with a quick puzzle. The answer is Ken Jennings' appearance on The Puzzler with A.J. Jacobs. The question is, what is the most entertaining listening experience in podcast land? Jeopardy-truthers believe in... I guess they would be Kenspiracy theorists. That's right. They give you the answers and you still blew it.

The Puzzler. Listen on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What would you do if one bad decision forced you to choose between a maximum security prison or the most brutal boot camp designed to be hell on earth? Unfortunately for Mark Lombardo, this was the choice he faced. He said, you are a number, a New York State number, and we own you. Listen to shock incarceration on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Kurt Brown-Oller.

And I am Scotty Landis, and we host Bananas, the podcast where we share the weirdest, funniest, real news stories from all around the world. And sometimes from our guest personal lives, too. Like when Whitney Cummings recently revealed her origin story on the show. There's no way I don't already have rabies. This is probably just why my personality is like this. I've been surviving rabies for the past 20 years.

New episodes of bananas drop every Tuesday in the exactly right network. Listen to bananas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an I-Heart podcast.